A week of firsts...

So much went down this past week.  I took Riya to the park for the first time. She didn't really like laying on grass at first, but she got used to it:)

She went to the beach for the first time. We didn't go in the water or anything, there's plenty of time for that during our upcoming vacation!

I love babies in white:) Riya wore a lot of white this week

We consistently did story time before bed every night this week. We've been reading to her on and off, but we officially made it part of her bedtime routine now, and she loves it! Her face lights up every time we read, it's priceless.

We offered her a sippy cup for the first time and she's doing great with it! She's been fighting me over holding her bottle lately, so we thought we'd give it a go. She's only drinking an ounce out of it twice a day right now, but she likes it! My independent woman:

And then there were a few firsts for me too. I got my first speeding ticket in the mail. Boo. And I went to my first mommy's night out. I only knew one other person going but it ended up being a fun night of dinner and drinks. Definitely felt weird to be out at night and it was hard to stay up past my bedtime but it was nice to get out.  Oh, how life has changed….

Next weekend my friend Kristen is coming down from Aberdeen. Can't wait!!!

Happy Half Birthday Riya!

Can you believe Riya is 6 months old?! Is it acceptable to have a party for a half birthday?!

Our 12.5 lb munchkin is changing everyday. We are now swaddle free (hooray!). And I can see those first set of teeth in her gums. These poor babies should be born with teeth. I hate to see her in pain but she is handling teething like a champ. I will add that teething babies are totally bi-polar. One minute she is fine, the next she is screaming her head off:/ As a result, I feel bi-polar quite often. I think I've taken up permanent residence in coo-coo ville. Poor Ram. Poor Ram indeed.

Riya is laughing now and it's the sweetest sound in the world. Though she makes us work very hard for those giggles, it's totally worth it! Her personality is showing more and more everyday, and I can't help but fall in love with her again and again:)

Our chatterbox has changed so much over the past 6 months! Take a look:

2 weeks old (left); 5 months old (right)

1 month old (left); 3 months old (right)

1 month old (left); 6 months old (right)

1 month old (left); 5 months old (right)

And here are some recent pics of our doll:

Her fav teething toys that she hoards! 

Big girl sitting in her big girl chair! Looks like she's ready for solids!!! 

It's the Ex-Pat way...

It's totally safe to go to a stranger's house with your baby. Right? Only in another country would you go to a stranger's house, with your infant baby, to meet someone for the first time because you share a common interest: friendship. 

It's the ex-pat way.

I've been bitching and moaning about not having any mommy friends and now that we are officially here for awhile, it was time I did something about it. I had been trying to get in touch with the leader of a mom and baby group here in my neighborhood for quite some time. Finally someone reached out to me last week and luckily there was a group play date scheduled the following day and I was added to their Facebook Group. 

So I peeled out of my driveway last Monday morning headed for a stranger's house to socialize with 8 complete strangers and their babies. Everyone was so nice and welcoming, it was such a relief. There were even a few babies close to Riya's age, but it seemed like I was the only first time mom. Well, that's fine with me, now I had plenty of people's brains to pick! 

Picture from the first group play date. Riya is on the far left:) 

There was only one other person that shared my American accent and she was kind enough to tell me  there was an American Moms Facebook Group and that they were meeting for coffee later that week. Sign me up! 

That coffee was also a success. Sometimes it's nice to hear the same accent when you live in a different country. It's nice to chat with someone that has a shared loved for Target (without having to explain what that is). It's nice to exchange tips and learn about new places and activities available in Dubai within the first hour. 

It's the ex-pat way.  

I'm new to this mom gig and these Facebook groups have been beyond helpful for anything and everything. This week I've already had two one-on-one play dates and there's a group coffee tomorrow. I'd say things are definitely looking up! 

So I take back all the negative things I said about the American ex-pats and ex-pats here in general. Clearly, I met the wrong group of women. I was meant to be in the mom group, where everyone is nice and has no energy for drama because let's face it, we are all way too damn tired. 

A Day in the Life of...

Since many of you have not met Riya, I thought I would give you a glimpse into a day in her life. At 5 months old, weighing 11 lbs and standing tall at 22 inches, baby girl has grown so much. She still has some catching up to do, but she's well on her way!

So what has she been doing the past 5 months? She's a cooing, smiling, drooling, milk chugging machine. (I wonder who she got the last part from :p)

LIKES:

1. Stand Up. After eating she likes to stand or be toted around the house to check out the world beyond her bedroom doors. She loves her stroller rides in the morning and afternoon when we walk Luca.

She's so serious!!! 

2. Tummy time. This is a no brainer, look at that smile! She's holding her head up high for several minutes and trying to both crawl and roll over. Crawling part makes me nervous, I'm not ready to have a mobile child. But we're so ready for her to learn to roll over! Swaddling is so last year. 

3. Snuggles. She loves to snuggle up to her crib bumper when she sleeps at night, which makes us a nervous wreck. I cannot tell you how many times we go in at night to make sure she's breathing.

Such a character! She cracks me up

4. Playtime. She is interacting more with objects around her. She's reaching for toys and grabbing onto blankets. It's such a beautiful thing to see the world through your baby's eyes and we feel so lucky to experience it.

5. Singing. This is the most successful distraction tactic. Too bad I can't complete a single nursery song. So for now, it's whatever song I know the lyrics too that pops into my head. Right now her fave is "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun." Ram, we're in trouble!

DISLIKES:

1. Naps are for babies. Apparently now that she is sleeping 12 hours at night (for the past month!), she thinks she doesn't need to nap during the day. Thankfully we didn't have to do the whole "cry it out" method at night but daytime is a whole different story. She loves to fake me out by cat napping in varying increments of time so that I will never know when that golden 1.5 hour nap will come.  I've bought every gadget and tried every trick. She's quite the worthy opponent. Challenge accepted. 

2. Swaddling. She is a swaddle breaking pro! I've literally seen her take one arm out to suck on and then the other. It's so cute but so frustrating!

Mid-reach

3. There's no holding her down. She already hates being strapped to the car seat or her bouncer. What are the chances she will enjoy a plane ride?

Check out her site for some cute pics and videos! https://riyaaiyer.shutterfly.com

Vacation, vacation, vacation

I have vacation brain! Ever since Riya was born we have been dreaming about the day when we can resume traveling again. Well, that time has finally come! But where can we go that's baby friendly??

This has been the debate for the past several months. Our criteria is simple: short flight (max 5 hours); resort type hotel; and minimal sight seeing prospects. Basically a beachy place would be ideal but those are quite expensive and baby girl won't even enjoy that yet, so not sure if it's a good idea. The fact that we cannot leave the hotel after her 7pm bedtime has also thrown a wrench into our planning.

After careful thought and consideration, we had to scratch the Maldives. I don't think it's safe to take Riya on a speed boat or sea plane to get to one of the islands:/ Then we thought of Seychelles. It appears that some of the hotels don't allow children under 13! And the hotels that have beach access and allow infants were super pricey, so didn't seem worth it while Riya is just a babe. It's on our list for next year though:)

Then we thought of Cyprus or Santorini, but the forecast in April is less than ideal.  Who knew that planning your first trip with a baby would be so hard.

So that leaves us with Oman and Jordan. All I know about those places is that Muscat, Oman has a beach and hiking trails, that are supposed to be beautiful. Jordan has the Dead Sea, amongst other sights. While those are places we want to visit before we leave the region, it's not sounding very appealing as our first vacay in a year. First world problem? 

If anyone has any suggestions, please pass them along!

Miracle Gardens

A few days before New Years, Ram and I decided to check out the Miracle Gardens, a mere 5 minute drive away. The Gardens hold the record for the longest flower wall in the Guinness Book of Records!  I can't say I'm surprised, Dubai's motto is "Go Big or Go Home." But this was only Phase I. They plan on making it bigger.

It was in the middle of no where, but we are in the desert after all. It was really nice to see some greenery and landscaping, and it was the perfect day for it. For a minute, I felt like I was out in the country. Apparently they have 45 different flower varieties and colors. (They all looked the same to me :p)

Riya decided to take a nap during our outing :(

I would love to live in a house made of flowers:) 

I totally want one! 

I look forward to going back when it's completed. Hopefully Riya will be awake to enjoy it too!

Happy New Year!

We hope everyone had a fantastic New Years. This year was the first tame New Years we've had in awhile. We packed up our stuff (Luca and all) and went to our friends, Asif & Dima, place for the night. Packing everything up was an event in and of itself! The sheer amount of stuff we had to bring for just 24 hours was enough to make me never want to travel with Riya and Luca again.

I was very nervous about being out with Riya for an extended period of time. Lately, because of her acid reflux, she doesn't nap more than 30 minutes and I never know when her discomfort level is going to spiral out of control. Luckily, our friends are well versed in all things baby since they have one of their own who also had acid reflux. They reassured me that within a few months everything will be better and I will forget about this hardship. I don't think I will ever forget, but I am looking forward to better days...

I was worried about putting Riya to sleep in her pack 'n' play (she only naps in there once a week) and in a different environment since she has been sleeping 8 hours straight for the past week and then 4 hours after that feed. So now we are down to 6 feeds and a predictable feeding schedule. Hallelujah! I'm hoping by the end of January she drops that pesky night feed! I have forgotten what it's like to sleep longer than 3-4 hours a day...

The afternoon started off shaky, but she did pretty well at night. She even slept through the fireworks:) It was nice to be able to spend New Years with friends and get some much needed adult time. I even stayed awake past midnight! (I came to regret that the next day when no-napping Riya was back in action).

All in all we had a great time, with great friends. I'm looking forward to all that 2014 has to bring and wish everyone the best this year!